Athletics

Black-and-white photograph of two women smiling at each other across a tennis net holding rackets and balls.
"Net Ball," 1916. Call Number: RG 66/20/18.

The athletic tradition at KU is long and inevitably a part of the University’s history. Our collection documents the legendary coaches and athletes, and lesser known individuals, as well as fans.

Materials include:

  • Photographs of teams, games, players, and fans
  • Film and videotape go back as far as the 1929 KU/K-State football game
  • Media guides
  • Programs
  • News releases
  • Clippings
  • Online Exhibits 

Information about KU fans can be found in the "History of Jayhawk Fandom" PowerPoint presentation given by Becky Schulte in 2013 and available online via KU ScholarWorks. Select footage of athletic events is now available in the University Archives Videos digital collection. Footage of KU basketball, football, and women's athletic events can now also be searched in the KU Libraries online catalog. You will need to do an advanced search on the phrase "University of Kansas [sport]." The opponent can be added to the search as well to limit the number of results. This footage is stored off-site at the Library Annex and requires several days for retrieval. Please contact Spencer Public Services at ksrlref@ku.edu for information regarding this and footage of other sporting events. 

University Archives Contacts

Molly Herring, Associate Archivist: mollyherring@ku.edu | 785-864-0113

Letha Johnson, University Archivist: ljohnson18@ku.edu | 785-864-5088